High School Sports

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville High senior Mateo Arias will occasionally make the switch from forward to the midfielder position at any given time for the Wildcatz boys’ soccer team. Not a problem for him at all.   But during Thursday night’s CIF NorCal Regionals Division I semifinals, he was asked...

APTOS—For the first time in the 53-year history of Aptos High athletics, the girls’ lacrosse team will represent the blue and white in the program’s inaugural season this year. With little to no experience across the roster, the Mariners will be faced with the task...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville High football team has been able to play in three of its scheduled games this season amidst the trouble that other Santa Cruz County schools are facing with ongoing cancelations due to Covid-19 protocols.  Second-year head coach Anthony Valdivia did have a small...

St. Francis junior quarterback Max Madrigal tossed four touchdowns in the first half to help lift the Sharks past North Monterey County in Pacific Coast Athletic League Mission Division-North action on Oct. 25. Madrigal completed 15 of 23 pass attempts for 277 yards. He connected...

Watsonville High’s girls volleyball team is off and running to another hot start following back-to-back league wins against Soledad and Alvarez high schools. The Wildcatz improved to 2-0 in Pacific Coast Athletic League Mission Division play and currently own a 5-0 overall record.  “We just have...

WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley High senior Emily Quezada tried out for the softball team last season after deciding she wanted to play the sport for the first time ever.  She was starting to pick up the game quite well until she was sidelined following an ankle injury...

Aptos High made its return to the diamond in February on a mission for a fourth straight league baseball championship in 2024.  It won’t be a cakewalk, though. Led by ninth-year head coach Jason Biancardi, he knows the Mariners will once again be the target of...

WATSONVILLE—Pajaro Valley High athletic director Joe Manfre is entering his second season as head coach of the football team.  When he took over the program, the process of having to coach in an abbreviated Covid-19 season was still a whirlwind to him.  Manfre said this season...

WATSONVILLE—St. Francis High football coach John Ausman doesn’t have much to work with when it comes to building a “powerhouse” program.  The school has roughly 220 students enrolled and the football program brings in about 20% of the student body—40 players—for both junior varsity and...

It’s been two weeks since Monte Vista Christian players threw on the helmets and shoulder pads for the first official day of practice. Mustangs third-year head coach Spencer Ferrari-Wood believes they aren’t quite where they want to be at this point of the early 2025...